The Big Blogging Mistakes I’ve Made (So You Don’t Have To!)

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, right? When I look back at my blogging journey, I can now easily see that there are certain points where I made some pretty big mistakes that definitely held me back from making the progress that I was dreaming of.

You could argue that it’s all part of the process, and that’s totally true. Still though, you don’t have to make the same blogging mistakes that I did. I hope you can learn from where I went wrong, and cut down your own learning curve so you can see results much faster.

These are a few of the big blogging mistakes that I’ve made – and how you can avoid them!

Spending more time consuming instead of creating

It’s just so easy to fall into this trap. You quickly realise that there are so many awesome blogs in your niche, and you naturally want to check them out. You want to see how they’re tackling the big topics, how they structure their content, and analyse what they’re doing so you can learn important lessons and find your own way.

There’s no denying that this can be really useful, but remember that there’s a very fine line. As a blogger, you ultimately have to be a creator, and you can’t do that to the best of your ability if you’re constantly reading and thinking about what other people are doing.

Sure, read other blogs. But limit the amount of time that you spend doing that, and set aside dedicated hours for writing and promoting your own stuff. It can be a tough habit to get into, but trust me… It’s one that’s going to serve you really well!

Taking a ‘we’ll see what happens’ approach to monetisation

One of the blogging mistakes that I made in my early days was that I knew that I wanted to eventually make money from my blog, but I was nowhere near as proactive as I should have been. I figured that I’d learn things a little further down the line, and that I didn’t have to rush into anything just yet.

Of course, that was true to a certain extent. As a blogger, you are completely your own boss, and it’s entirely down to you just how quickly you want to progress. But having a strategy is a really good idea, and looking back, I can see why it’s sensible to start monetising from the offset.

It’s a learning curve, and you’ll make mistakes. You’ll find that there are things that work for other bloggers, but aren’t necessarily right for you, and visa versa. The bottom line is that the sooner you begin, the sooner you’ll start to see results. If you’re looking for some inspiration, visit this guide on 5 steps to earning money from your blog.

Jumping from one bright shiny object to another

As a blogger, you’ll quickly discover that there’s always someone who’s going to try to sell you what they believe is your fast track to success. There are courses about getting massive traffic from Pinterest, using Facebook Ads to build a big audience, and a million and one other things.

It’s often the case that these things can indeed create big results. But what’s essential to remember here is that you can’t possibly do everything well. There just aren’t enough hours in the day, and you’ll spread yourself far too thin.

A few months into my blogging journey, I selected just a few strategies to focus on, and I stopped being distracted by everything else. This gave me much more focus, and my results started to improve.

Going for free options when investing some cash would make more sense

The beauty of blogging is that it really doesn’t have to cost you a lot of money to get started. This is hugely exciting. When you think about the costs that are involved with building a traditional bricks and mortar business, we have it pretty sweet. But this doesn’t mean that you should try to do everything for free, or even on the cheap.

Investing in your own domain name and hosting from the beginning will ensure that you look like you’re a professional who’s really taking this seriously. You might also want to consider investing in email marketing software so you can start building your email list.

If you’re eager to monetise your blog, then you need to think like a business owner. There are certain costs that are likely to maximise your returns, so they spending some cash could really put you ahead of the crowd.

Are there any additional blogging mistakes that you’ve made on your own journey? Leave a comment below and share your experiences.